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artist or maker

Cuyp, Aelbert (b.1620, d.1691)

Date

c 1655

dated stylistically

Place of production

Dordrecht, Holland, Netherlands

Medium

oil on canvas

Type of object

paintings

Accession number

2566

Large oil painting of a landscape which has steep rocks to the right, a tall tree in the centre, water to the left, and cattle, sheep, a horseman and two dogs in the foreground. The horseman is in the centre. He wears a brown hat and jacket, covered by a red cloak; he carries a sword. To the right, there is a woman, probably a cowherder, and a man, probably a shepherd, in conversation. They both carry long sticks. The sheep are to the right of the man. Three cows, one drinking, appear on the left of the composition. The shepherd's dog urinates on a stone in the lower right corner. The horseman's hunting dog runs towards the shepherd's dog. In the background on the left, there is a castle on a rocky outcrop and a town with imaginary buildings including a large round temple structure.

Aelbert Cuyp made a series of paintings of the Rhine valley in the 1650s. This peaceful scene of cows and sheep relates to these studies. It also has imaginary passages that may emphasise Dutch nationalistic features.

Commentary

Cuyp travelled along the Rhine valley between Nijmegen and Cleves in the early 1650s, taking drawings in a sketchbook. Although most of his related paintings were based on sketches, there were also imaginary features. This painting has the fantasy elements of an Italianate landscape, such as the rocky cliff. The town appears to be based on the city of Nijmegen. One building may be the lost medieval citadel known as the Valkhof, a building that had patriotic symbolism for members of the newly created Dutch State. It was believed that Nijmegen was the seat of the leader of the ancient revolt against the Romans. Other buildings are purely imaginary.

The painting shows Cuyp's mastery of light and shadow. Warm evening tones and a hazy atmosphere give the scene a mediterranean look. Cuyp is well known for his lighting effects derived from Italianate paintings developed through his interest in the works of Jan Both (c.1618-1652).

The path draws the viewer into the composition, as with other paintings by Cuyp. However, the wealth of incident on the path means the painting is not considered to be as successful as some of Cuyp's other landscape paintings. Cuyp returned to the subject of riders in river landscapes several times. The cows reflected in the water appear to be out of scale to the people. They are reminiscent of paintings of Paulus Potter (1625-1654). The striking tree, used in other compositions, does however lend balance to the painting dividing the scene in two.

The confrontation between the gentleman's hunting dog and the shepherd's urinating dog suggests the peasants are uncivilized in relation to the elegant horseman. This diverges from other Dutch paintings that represented peasants as 'wise herders' - simple and virtuous figures in contrast with corrupt courtiers (see Arthur K Wheelock Jr.; Aelbert Cuyp; New York; Thames & Hudson; 2001, nos. 44-45). Cuyp's patrons were wealthy Dordrecht citizens with country estates. The rider's elegant refinement probably suited their self image. Cuyp entered this social class with his marriage in 1658, just a few years after this painting was made.

Phillippa Plock, 2011

Physical description

Dimensions (mm) / weight (mg)

1321 x 2057

Signature & date

signed, lower right: A. cŭyp.

History

Provenance

Possibly given by William III of England (b.1650, d.1702) to a Dugdale of Wroxall or possibly sold London, Hobbs, 21 February 1765 no. 2:76; possibly acquired by Geddes at this sale for £210; acquired by W. Stratford Dugdale before 1842; sold by Dugdale via Christie's March 1889 for £14,700 to Wertheimer; acquired by Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild (b.1839, d.1898); inherited by his sister Alice de Rothschild (b.1847, d.1922); inherited by her great-nephew James de Rothschild (b.1878, d.1957); bequeathed to Waddesdon (National Trust) in 1957.

Exhibition history

British Institute Exhibition, London, 1842, no. 22 as Landscape with Figures and Cattle, lent by W. S. Dugdale
British Institute Exhibition, London, 1862, no. 38
Royal Academy Exhibition, London, 1880, no. 117, lent by W. Stratford Dugdale

Collection

Waddesdon (National Trust)
Bequest of James de Rothschild, 1957

Bibliography

Cornelis Hofstede de Groot; A Catalogue Raisonné of the Works of the Most Eminent Dutch Painters of the Seventeenth Century. Vols 1-4 [1907-1927]; Bishops Stortford; Chadwick Healey; 1976; vol. 2, nos 458a and 711
Ellis Waterhouse, Anthony Blunt; Paintings: The James A. de Rothschild Collection at Waddesdon Manor; Fribourg; Office du Livre, The National Trust; 1967; pp. 130-131, cat. no. 53
S. Reiss; Aelbert Cuyp; London; Zwemmer; 1975; no. 137
Alan Chong; Aelbert Cuyp and the Meanings of Landscape; New York University; 1992; p. 422, no. 167; as 'River valley with a horseman and buildings in the distance'

Related files

- http://www.nga.gov/fcgi-bin/tinfo_f?object=1153 = [accessed 14 July 2011, related painting in National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1942.9.16]
- http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/cgi-bin/WebObjects.dll/CollectionPublisher.woa/wa/work?workNumber=ng6522 [accessed 14 July 2011, related painting in National Gallery London, NG6522]
- http://www.imamuseum.org/explore/artwork/350 [accessed 14 July 2011, related painting by Cuyp, "The Valkhof at Nijmegen", in the Indianapolis Museum of Art, 43.107]
- http://www.nga.gov/fcgi-bin/tinfo_f?object=1153 = [accessed 14 July 2011, related painting in National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1942.9.16]

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